Every October, dozens of awareness campaigns and actions encourage citizens to self-examine or go to the doctor’s office for a breast cancer checkup. But in most cases these intentions fall on deaf ears; or at least that’s what the creative agency Yard NYC considers it, which this year invites you to follow up through one of the most widespread resources on the internet: nudes.
The idea is that taking periodic photographs will help women keep track of
The agency has launched “Send Nudes”, a campaign that aims to contribute to the prevention of breast cancer by redefining nudes, that is, intimate photographs or videos that people take of themselves looking totally or partially naked. The thinking behind the creative concept is that taking regular photographs can help women keep track of possible visual disturbances in the breasts, one of the early indicators of the disease.
The agency, led by a team of women, reverses the purpose of the nudes so that, instead of being destined for a possible sexual or romantic interest, women send them to themselves and accumulate them in their phone galleries as a possible resource in the medical consultation. The use of nudes and the codes of digital culture responds to the intention of empowering young women in prevention.
Yard NYC will send its message to society until the end of October through outdoor advertising activations in New York and executions on social networks under the concept “Send nudes to yourself.” In addition, it has created a dedicated website that collects information on the signs to detect the disease and contact associations and organizations specialized in breast cancer.
“For many young women, breast cancer is still something to worry about later in life. Or something that happens to other people, especially if there is no family history. So we wanted to do something different. Something impossible to ignore and incredibly easy to act on“, they have explained from the agency through social networks. “Save it to your camera gallery. Familiarize yourself with what is normal for you, so you will be better positioned to notice when something changes. It’s not a substitute for recommended screening, but it’s a simple way to pay more attention to your own body.”.
The campaign also responds to reality and is based on relevant insights. Based on scientific research data, they point out that breast cancer is growing twice as fast among women under 50 years of age; or that 85% of women diagnosed with the disease had no family history. In addition, they point out that 62% of women consider that they cannot identify a change in their breasts, which makes prevention difficult.
The intention is also to reverse the cultural context. “Women are surrounded by messages about what our breasts should be, but we receive far fewer reminders about the importance of really knowing what ours look like.“said Caroline Seklir, Director of Strategy at Yard NYC. “The idea is to normalize this for a new generation of women growing up in a world marked by *selfies*, giving them the power of self-awareness on their own terms, long before they reach the recommended age for a mammogram.“.
